Calgary 42-unit multi-family package sells for $6.58 million

Avison Young
Western Investor

The two-property rental portfolio is in Calgary’s popular Mission District.

Property type: Multi-family portfolio

Locations: 111-117 24th Avenue SW & 316 18th Avenue SW, Calgary.

Number of buildings: 2

Number of units: 42 (total)

List price: $6.73 million

Sale price: $6.58 million

Date of sale: February 4, 2022

Brokerage: Avison Young, Calgary

Broker: Haig Basmadjian

 

© 2022 Western Investor

Calgary 42 unit multi family package sells for 6 58 million

Avison Young
Western Investor

Calgary 42 unit multi family package sells for 6 58 million

Avison Young
Western Investor

Calgary 42 unit multi family package sells for 6 58 million

Avison Young
Western Investor

Calgary 42 unit multi family package sells for 6 58 million

Avison Young
Western Investor

Kelowna is now the fastest growing city in Canada

Western Investor Staff
Western Investor

Okanagan centre has seen growth of 13.8 per cent from 2016 to 2021 to more than 144,500 people, latest census data shows

 New condos under construction in downtown Kelowna. | Western Investor

Okanagan centre has seen growth of 13.8 per cent from 2016 to 2021 to more than 144,500 people, latest census data shows

Kelowna, B.C. is officially the fastest growing city in Canada, according to the 2021 census data released February 9 by Statistics Canada.

Census figures show the Kelowna Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) has grown faster over the past five years that any of the other 40 CMAs in the country.

The Central Okanagan region, stretching from Peachland to Lake Country has a population of 222,167 — 14 per cent more than in 2016.

“I’m not surprised at all,” said Loyal Wooldridge, acting mayor of Kelowna and the chair of the Regional District of Central Okanagan.

“Seeing growth of 14 per cent sheds light on just how important it is that we have synergy in growth between our municipalities, because while certain council plan their municipalities or their First Nation, we have to be mindful that residents don’t see those borders.

“That’s why we are going through a regional housing strategy to understand the different OCPs [official community plans] spread across the partners and how that can create more synergies.”

Wooldridge says the unprecedented growth, not only across the region but within each of the six jurisdictions, makes it imperative that housing, transportation and environmental matters are balanced with an eye both regionally and municipally.

Statistically, Lake Country continues to be the fastest growing municipality in the Central Okanagan

Lake Country’s population, 15,817 is 22.4 per cent greater than the last census figures in 2016.

Kelowna, at 144,576, has grown by 13.5 per cent, West Kelowna (36,078) has grown 10.5 per cent while Peachland (5,789) has increased 6.7 per cent.

The City of Kelowna’s desire to move people from the outskirts of town into core areas seems to be working.

According to census figures, the city has the third fastest growing downtown of any CMA.

The downtown core grew by 23.8 per cent, behind only Halifax (26.1%) and Montreal (24.2%).

With a slowing of immigration due to the pandemic, much of the growth seen over the past two years specifically has been a result of migration from other parts of the province and country.

The Kelowna CMA benefited from the fact B.C. was the only western province which saw more people move in from other parts of the country than move out, a net gain of 97,424.

The City of Kelowna has forecast a population closing in on 200,000 by 2040, with 40,000 to 50,000 new residents expected over the next 20 years.

© 2022 Western Investor

Kitsilano waterfront home with breathtaking views sells for $14 million

Amir Ali
other

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
A stunning waterfront home in Kitsilano took the prestigious title of being the biggest sale of the year so far, selling for $13,980,000.
Daily Hive gave you a look inside the Point Grey Road home back in 2019, and at the time, the asking price was $17.98 million.
The property was on the market for 422 days before it was sold by Daniel Tan with Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty.

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
Buyers tend to pay a lot for a nice view, and the view from 3197 Point Grey Road is nothing short of stunning. The house also features many amenities, including a fire pit on the rear patio and a hot tub.

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
The listing suggests that this property has the best views of any property on Point Grey Road, shared with just one neighbour.

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
The home boasts 3,304 sq ft, with five bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms. While the house was originally built in 1915, it was renovated in 1992 and looks to be in pristine condition. You’d expect nothing less for $13.98 million.

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
The north-facing rear of the two-storey Kitsilano home entails four outdoor areas — a balcony for the master bedroom on the second level, a sizeable patio on the first level that turns the kitchen and family room into an entertainer’s dream, an expansive backyard with a garden and patio that opens up the basement level, and a private waterside deck below the basement level with access for kayaking and paddle boarding.
3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
The breathtaking views extend to some of the bedrooms and bathrooms.

3197 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (Angell, Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.)
The garden suite is self-contained, and features two bedrooms and two bathrooms, but Angell, Hasman & Associates suggests that it could easily be incorporated into the main home.
Specs:
5 bedrooms
5 bathrooms (2 half bathrooms)
4 outdoor decks
3 fireplaces
Hot tub
180 degree views of Burrard Inlet, the North Shore mountains, and the downtown Vancouver skyline
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Housing demand: Record 55,000 immigrants expected for Metro Vancouver in 2022
With files from Kenneth Chan

Copyright Ⓒ 2022 Buzz Connected Media Inc.

House sale delayed as tenant ‘milked the system’, landlord alleges

Andrew Duffy
Western Investor

 A landlord says the new owners of this house in Victoria had to stay in a hotel and store their furniture for weeks while the tenant disputed the eviction. | Adrian Lam, Times Colonist

Landlord claims the sale of Victoria property held up by a tenant who made “frivolous” allegations to get rent-free time

A Victoria landlord says it’s time for an overhaul of the dispute-resolution process for landlords and tenants after fighting for weeks to evict a tenant in order to close the sale of his house.

Liam McGowan said the sale of his Fairfield property was held up by a tenant who milked the system for all the rent-free time he could get.

“It was a disaster — this guy played the system all the way,” said McGowan. He said he went through all the required steps once a purchase offer was accepted, but the tenant refused to leave.

On Oct. 28 of last year, the tenant was advised the house was sold and he would have to be out by Jan. 1, 2022.

McGowan said the tenant, who had been in the home since October 2019, paying $3,500 per month in rent on a month-to-month basis, disputed the eviction on the grounds he’d overheard the new owners suggesting they were going to renovate, which he took to mean they were going to rent the house out. If that was the case, he could not be evicted.

He knew that would delay the [transaction], but he submitted no evidence to the Residential Tenancy Branch,” said McGowan. That initially delayed the sale for a month. After an arbitrator found in favour of McGowan, the tenant applied for a review, further delaying the process.

The new owners provided statements to the Residential Tenancy Branch saying the only renovations would be for their own comfort and that the Fairfield home was to be their principal residence.

“There seems to be no consequence for bringing any dispute to the branch, even when they are frivolous and unfounded like this one,” said McGowan. “All he had to do is suggest that there’s new evidence and everything stops again. And there’s no consequence for that.”

The tenant did finally move out and the new owners, who are from Kelowna, are expected to take possession soon.

But McGowan notes the move was supposed to happen more than a month earlier, and the new owners have had to pay to store their furniture and stay in a hotel for weeks.

McGowan was also forced to reduce the selling price of the home and had the closing date moved to the start of February, while the tenant lived at the home rent-free during the process.

“And you know what, this is not unusual,” said McGowan. “Something has to change.”

Hunter Boucher, director of operations at Landlord B.C., said while the process isn’t perfect, the legislation is relatively balanced and the change that needs to occur is in the wait time for resolution of disputes like McGowan’s.

“The problem is timely access to justice. With the significant wait times, landlords and tenants are denied that,” he said. “And when you have a situation where you may be waiting two, three or four months for a hearing to find out whether or not you are going to receive an order of possession, or whether that notice and tenancy is going to be upheld, that has a significant amount of impact on people.”

The ministry responsible for the Residential Tenancy Branch says it is working to improve wait times and streamline systems to reduce decision delays in the face of a surge in the number of disputes.

In a statement, the Ministry of the Attorney General said the branch is dealing with a 17 per cent increase in dispute applications each month.

The ministry said the dispute-resolution process is intended to resolve issues where one party is not upholding their obligations under the Residential Tenancy Act, adding that until the file is reviewed by an arbitrator, it can be difficult to determine whether a dispute has merit.

“We acknowledge the stress this puts on landlords and tenants who are waiting for a resolution and are actively looking for ways to address circumstances where one party files a dispute to take advantage of these delays.”

 

© 2022 Western Investor

Concord’s Burnaby condo development will have its own ‘tropical’ beach

Joseph Ruttle
The Vancouver Sun

The centrepiece of the 26-acre residential-retail project is a 120,000-square-foot outdoor beachfront oasis

An overview of the Concord Brentwood development in Burnaby that will include a “tropical” oasis at its centre. Photo by Concord Pacific
Concord Pacific’s new residential complex in Burnaby’s Brentwood district will have something any stranded snowbird can get behind: its own “tropical” beach oasis.
The development is due to finish two towers of a planned three this year, with previews starting this week and sales later this month.
The centrepiece of the 26-acre residential-retail project is a 120,000 square foot outdoor beachfront and running track.
Oh, and a bowling alley too.

The bowling alley at Concord Brentwood. Photo by Concord Pacific
The oasis idea was inspired by beachfront resorts like the Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach.
It will include an upper-level 400 metre running and walking track, and a garden area overlooking a ground-level lounging area and lagoon. The outdoor beachfront can also be viewed year-round from the indoor pool.
Concord Pacific senior vice-president Grant Murray said the idea is to offer views of water that can “provide people with a sense of relaxation, which is why we all go in search of tropical and waterfront vacations.

The sunbathing beach at Concord’s Brentwood condo development. Photo by Concord Pacific
He calls it “an inspiring wellness escape that is light to look at and fun to experience. Regardless of the weather, it provides incredible water views for residents.”
The oasis will be designed for lounging around in summer and will give a hint of the tropics even in winter when viewed from indoors.
The finished Concord Brentwood development will feature three towers with more than 900 residences plus retail and commercial space at street level.

© 2022 Vancouver Sun

Suburb population growth spurred by higher home prices, desire for more space: Statistics Canada

Michelle McNally
Livabl

 The country’s largest metropolitan areas have reported ongoing urban spread, a phenomenon that could be the result of rising home prices and changing consumer preferences.

In a new Statistics Canada report, the federal department stated that downtowns in Canada’s largest urban centres have been growing rapidly. Meanwhile, urban spread has continued as suburbs located farthest from downtowns reported a faster pace of population growth compared to other suburban areas.

In 2021, three in four Canadians (73.7 per cent) lived in one of Canada’s large urban centres, which is an increase from 73.2 per cent five years ago. In the same year, there were six more census metropolitan areas (CMAs) than five years before, which is an indication of increasing urbanization. A CMA is defined as an urban area with a population of 100,000 people or more. Such regions accounted for most of Canada’s population growth from 2016 to 2021, rising 5.2 per cent.

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The findings from Statistics Canada use new 2021 census data to examine how Canada’s 41 large urban centres have changed since 2016 and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Statistics Canada clarified that a downtown area is located in the core of a CMA. All other areas can be characterized into one of four zones by their proximity to downtown: urban fringe, (less than a 10 minute drive from downtown) near suburb, (10 to 20 minutes from downtown), intermediate suburb (20 to 30 minutes from downtown), and distant suburb (30 minutes or more from downtown).

Larger homes and higher prices driving suburban population growth

The distant suburbs in Canada’s three largest urban centres grew at a faster pace than the urban fringe and suburbs closer to downtown, evidence of ongoing urban spread.

Population increases to the distant suburbs in Toronto (9.4 per cent), Montréal (seven per cent) and Vancouver (9.5 per cent) between 2016 and 2021 surpassed growth of their overall CMAs. In the Vancouver CMA, the distant suburbs grew at the fastest pace from 2016 to 2021. In Toronto, nearly three-quarters of the total population growth in the CMA resulted from distant suburbs. 

 

Map 1: “Urban spread is continuing in the census metropolitan area of Toronto while its downtown is growing more rapidly than before,” Statistics Canada

Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa also witnessed significant urban spread in their intermediate suburbs, which grew 23.4 per cent, 23.3 per cent and 21.4 per cent during the same five-year period.

“The sustained population growth in the intermediate and distant suburbs may be attributable to various factors, including limited space to build new housing close to downtown, the desire of some families to have a larger home or property, the lower cost of housing on the outskirts or wanting to be closer to nature,” explained the report.

In some suburban areas, population growth may have been supported by the work from home movement. In April 2020, 40 per cent of employees worked most of their hours from home, up drastically from four per cent in 2016.

Higher home prices could also be a factor. New home prices were up 11.3 per cent year-over-year nationally in May 2021, the largest increase since November 2006 according to Statistics Canada. New property prices were also 17.8 per cent higher compared to 2016.

“Higher housing prices may have tempted Canadians to move to more distant suburbs, where larger houses could be available at a lower cost than closer to downtown,” said the report.

Downtown populations on the rise in Canada

From 2016 to 2021, Canada’s 42 downtowns grew at over twice the pace (10.9 per cent) compared to the previous five-year period (4.6 per cent) despite a slowdown caused by the pandemic.

In Canada’s largest CMAs, Montréal, Calgary and Toronto were among the fastest-growing downtowns from 2016 to 2021, rising 24.2 per cent, 21 per cent and 16.1 per cent. Vancouver’s downtown population grew 7.4 per cent in the same five-year period.

 

Map 3: “Distant suburb makes up more than half of Vancouver census metropolitan area’s population growth while its downtown has the highest population density in the country,” Statistics Canada

Thirty-six of Canada’s downtowns reported a rise in their population over the five years, and 33 downtowns witnessed the pace of population growth accelerate compared to the previous census cycle from 2011 to 2016.

Downtowns have also become more densely populated since 2016, with the population of downtowns rising faster (10.9 per cent) than the population of CMAs overall (6.1 per cent). For example, Halifax’s downtown population grew three times faster (26.1 per cent) than the Halifax CMA (9.1 per cent).

A number of influences could be contributing to rising downtown population growth. Administrations in several cities have adopted plans to boost density and housing supply in downtowns, Statistics Canada noted. The desire to live in central neighbourhoods that minimize commute times and offer nearby services and entertainment is also a factor.

COVID-19 pumps breaks on population growth

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020, the population in most of Canada’s downtowns either grew slower or declined.

From July 1st, 2020 to the end of June 2021, the downtown population of Toronto had grown 0.4 per cent, a slower pace compared to the 2016 to 2021 timeline, which increased 3.2 per cent annually.

“This may be related to housing supply, especially condominiums, where new units continued to come onto the market even after the onset of the pandemic,” noted the report. “Some buyers who bought their home prior to the pandemic may only have taken possession in 2020 or 2021.”

Thirty-eight of Canada’s 42 downtowns reported a slowdown in their population growth between July 1st, 2020 to June 2021 compared to pre-pandemic times (2016 to 2019). Populations dropped in 30 of Canada’s 42 downtowns during the same period.

To a lesser extent, the pace of population growth in the suburbs has also slowed since the start of the pandemic.

From July 2020 to June 2021, the population of the distant suburbs in the Toronto (1.8 per cent) and Montreal (0.7 per cent) CMAs grew at a slightly slower pace compared to the annual averages from 2016 to 2021, which were up 1.9 per cent in Toronto and 1.4 per cent in Montreal.

Statistics Canada pointed out that those working from home may have chosen to move out of the downtown to the suburbs in search of more space or a more affordable home, which may explain why the pandemic has had less of an impact on population growth in suburbs.

 

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